Students get feet wet in stream project

No cell phones, no iPods, no e-mails, no text messages. Just the cool, clean Central Oregon air, the sound of rapidly-flowing Whychus Creek and a chance to get their hands dirty.

Quite a change for middle-school students from Sisters and Madras who came to the site last week. These were the first groups of students to participate in a Wolftree educational field day at 58 acres on Whychus Creek since agreement was reached to sell the property to Wolftree. The property will officially belong to the organization in mid-June when the transaction closes escrow, according to board member Janet Zuelke.

Wolftree is an educational organization with offices in Sisters and Portland. The mission of Wolftree is to provide innovative outdoor science education and increase science literacy for young people, particularly in forest and aquatic ecosystems.

Twenty students from Sisters Middle School came to the site. Under the leadership of teacher Rob Jensen, the students did stream restoration, riparian area assessment and worked to build a trail.

Students took stream samples for water quality and discussed ideal conditions to restore and maintain steelhead fish runs. They also planted 100 trees on the banks of the creek, mostly native willows donated by Clearwater Nursery in Redmond.

Zuelke said the intent for the property is to make it available for use by community organizations. She named as examples the Boy Scouts, Girl Scouts, or art groups.

Zuelke said Wolftree plans to "tread lightly on the land."

The property does have a mobile home on a two-acre clearing, but Zuelke expects no need for any large buildings or other major impacts on the property.

Students from many surrounding communities will participate in the program.

Wolftree Education Director Jay Hopp is leaving the program soon to spend two years in Malaysia and do field biology.

Prescott College graduates Ashley Burry-Trice and Blake Lowery will replace Hopp. Both have degrees in environmental studies.

The program has support from state and federal agencies and other organizations.

Cindy Glick, Sisters Resident and a Forester for the U.S. Forest Service in its Bend office, supports Wolftree. She said the Chief of the Forest Service urges agency personnel to look for opportunities to provide outdoor education to youths.

Glick said she likes Wolftree's "hands on" approach that allows students to learn and discover information rather than read a book or listen to a lecture.

Wolftree maintains about one adult for every five students through the use of volunteers and staff people. Each student wears a lifejacket and receives safety instructions for such things as tools and wheelbarrows.

Sweet Medicine Nation, an international delegate to the Choctaw Council of Elders and a Wolftree mentor, said the program is "awesome" because it provides a broad educational experience.

The property is roughly the shape of a triangle and is located on both sides of the Whychus Creek. Winter storms caused a large pine tree to fall across the creek. The tree is now an effective bridge for the students to use.

Government agencies have put about 500,000 steelhead into the Whychus to help restore historic fish runs. A $500,000 grant from the Oregon Watershed Enhancement Board (OWEB) was recently approved to help with the purchase price.